‘Arrange your Love Marriage’ — a book review by a married girl

“A great marriage is not when the ‘perfect couple’ comes together. It is when an imperfect couple learns to enjoy their differences.” — Dave Meurer

The book written by author Meera Ravi reflects her deep understanding of relationships. The title of the book however can make the reader pick it up with an idea that it might contain guidance on how to make the desire of marrying their lover come true. But as one progresses through the pages, they realise that it is actually a handbook about marriage which starts from a systematic route of finding the right life partner to getting old gracefully with them.

It is kind of an ‘operation manual’ with the direction for how to have a successful relationship, a much needed guide in an era where a substantial number of couples either get divorced, or continue to stay together in a ‘dead’ relationship. If the book is followed in the right manner, it can help in reviving the lost spark in relationships.

The book gives an insight into the factors shaping the psychology of people which include events occurred in childhood, their life circumstances and people they have known in the journey of life. This in turn plays a great role in building their perspectives in life which decide the quality of relationships they have with their partners. Hence, before understanding your partner, it is important to dive deep inside yourself and do a critical analysis whether you are still carrying any baggage from your past experiences. It needs to be dealt with else it will haunt your future leading to undesired behaviour or unrealistic expectations from your partner.

The section of the book that I think would resonate more with the readers is the one about fights among married couples which is shown as a normal occurrence of ‘real’ relationships. What I found more interesting is the advise on ‘how to fight’ in the right manner that it leads to a let out of bottled up feelings in a dignified and more positive manner. Expressing oneself can bring a couple closer, who otherwise if deal with it quietly can drift apart.

Overall I feel that the book is an interesting quick read. The beauty of it is that every reader is going to perceive it in a different way considering their own unique circumstances in life. If anything about the book that could have been done differently, I think is the title which gives a more crisper idea of the content inside. My random recommendations — “Something that no one tells you about marriage”, “Is made for each other couple a myth or reality”, “Marriage — a constant work in progress”.

Overall I would rate it at 4 out of 5.